technomage
October 30th 2005, 04:36 PM
Beauty without strength is a vapid mockery, paralyzed by its weakness. Strength without beauty is a brutish travesty, made horrible by its corruption. Both, incarnated together, make a complete person. But this Beauty is not the empty and transient charms of mere physical beauty, nor is this Strength merely the raw power of undirected sinew: True Beauty and True Strength come from within, and cannot be seen on the outside of a person. It is the process of developing beauty and strength that makes one mature, whether one is Wiccan or Cowan. Mere physical beauty or physical strength will fade with age, but if you can learn the lesson of Beauty and Strength, then even when the years have weakened your limbs and withered your face and body, you will find within you a wellspring of power.
But of power, be wary. One can have power, yet not have the compassion to wield it for good: this is Power wasted, or used to ill ends. One can have compassion, and not have the power to put it into action: this is compassion that sits and cries, wishing that "something could be done." Do not be as one of these: we all have Power, even if we do not know that we have it; and we all have the ability for Compassion, even if we harden our heart against it. When you can use your Power--be it magic, money, or the sweat of your brow--to help your worst enemy, you have begun to learn Compassion. Until such time, Power will not avail you, and the Compassion of others will not touch you.
To help one's enemy is an honorable thing, but honor can lead to pride, which will be your downfall. Honor goes hand in hand with humility. Those who humble themselves can find exaltation, but there are two ways to find humility. You can learn humility the easy way by choosing to be humble, or you can learn humility the hard way, when the Universe takes your pride, and your honor, and breaks it--and you.
And for this reason, we revere the Universe, but we do not do so without mirth. Mirth without reverence is frivolity: reverence without mirth is Puritanism. Both mirth and reverence can benefit, but not without the opposite.
The Magician develops the Self, and ignores the Other except when the Other can be of service to him. The Priest develops the Other, and represses the Self except when the Self can serve. Look for the middle path between these two.
As long as we cause no harm, we are free to act as we please; yet to live causes harm. Life feeds on life, and there is tension between the needs of living and the requirements of living rightly. Look within the tension of that paradox.
But of power, be wary. One can have power, yet not have the compassion to wield it for good: this is Power wasted, or used to ill ends. One can have compassion, and not have the power to put it into action: this is compassion that sits and cries, wishing that "something could be done." Do not be as one of these: we all have Power, even if we do not know that we have it; and we all have the ability for Compassion, even if we harden our heart against it. When you can use your Power--be it magic, money, or the sweat of your brow--to help your worst enemy, you have begun to learn Compassion. Until such time, Power will not avail you, and the Compassion of others will not touch you.
To help one's enemy is an honorable thing, but honor can lead to pride, which will be your downfall. Honor goes hand in hand with humility. Those who humble themselves can find exaltation, but there are two ways to find humility. You can learn humility the easy way by choosing to be humble, or you can learn humility the hard way, when the Universe takes your pride, and your honor, and breaks it--and you.
And for this reason, we revere the Universe, but we do not do so without mirth. Mirth without reverence is frivolity: reverence without mirth is Puritanism. Both mirth and reverence can benefit, but not without the opposite.
The Magician develops the Self, and ignores the Other except when the Other can be of service to him. The Priest develops the Other, and represses the Self except when the Self can serve. Look for the middle path between these two.
As long as we cause no harm, we are free to act as we please; yet to live causes harm. Life feeds on life, and there is tension between the needs of living and the requirements of living rightly. Look within the tension of that paradox.